Thirteen 5

Review of Moonlight Meadery’s Thirteen 5. This appears to be their ‘How Do You Like Them Apples’ with a new name, plus apparently it is now aged in new oak instead of whiskey barrels. I assume Thirteen 5 refers to this being 13.5% ABV. The name change is likely to differentiate it from their ‘How Do You Like Them Little Apples’, which is a lower ABV cider (instead of a higher ABV cyser like this).

Cider Description:A New England Hard Cider, made from freshly pressed apple cider with a bit of natural sugar used to help reach the impressive strength, then we let it age in hand made American Foeders.

Cidery Description: We are a world class meadery and cidery from Londonderry, New Hampshire that specializes in meads, the world’s oldest alcoholic beverage made from honey, as well as hard ciders. The diversity of our offerings often leave people speechless, while the flavors have them asking for it from their local retailers. Stop by and try the oldest fermented beverage to find out why “History never tasted so good”™.

They have been around since May 2010 and have a tasting room in Londonderry NH.

Price: ~$6 / single canWhere Bought: Schilling Cider House in Seattle WAWhere Drank: homeHow Found: browsing; I was curious if this was a new or renamed product, and if they had fixed a previous issue I’ve noticed with their canned ciders turning sour/vinegary over time

Tasting Notes: Semi-sweet. Medium bodied. Low tartness, acidity, and tannins. No bitterness or funk. Hints of sourness, especially on the finish. Notes of concentrated apple, honey, orange, oak, caramel, and brown sugar. Moderate length finish, which is also the only time when the high ABV is noticeable. Low oak/barrel influence. Moderate to high apple and honey flavor. Low sessionability. High flavor intensity. Moderate complexity.

My Opinion: At first I liked it. However, same as I had experienced with previous canned batches of their ciders, with the finish, there were hints of sourness and vinegar. So, it appears the issue hasn’t been fixed. The longer these sit around, the worse they get (this batch said Dec 2017). Unfortunately this makes it quite unlikely I’ll want to try any cans from them again, as now this is three different batches in a row spread out over time with apparently the same defect.

Most Similar to:Ice cider and Moonlight Meadery Last Apple (although that one had more honey than apple flavor, in contrast to this one), which are both high ABV, sweet, and have concentrated rich flavor notes.